The northern lights recently lit up UK skies this week, and some lucky stargazers also saw Steve, the natural rare phenomenon, that has only been seen in a select number of countries: the United Kingdom, Canada, Alaska, northern U.S. states, Australia, and New Zealand.
As the night gets darker quicker - and for longer - there are several natural phenomena to keep an eye out for that occur all over the world - in both the Northern Hemisphere and the South.
Many of these phenomena are bright and colourful, providing lucky viewers a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity to view what the Earth can offer in technicolour. Here is a list of some of the most spectacular natural phenomena in the sky.
1. Light Pillars
Iridescent pillars of light seemingly shine from the ground and into the sky. These occur when light from the Sun or Moon is reflected upwards by ice crystals in the air. But for this to form, it needs to be calm yet cold. These pillars have been spotted all over Scandinavia, Canada and Alaska, with Sun pillars spotted all over the US. | KAREN BLEIER/AFP via Getty Images
2. Sun Halos
Sun Halos are an atmospheric optical phenomenon produced by the Sun. It is a member of the family of halos caused by the refraction of sunlight by ice crystals in the atmosphere. These can be seen anywhere in the world during any season, but are not always obvious or bright. They are best seen and most conspicuous when the Sun is near the horizon. The ice crystals responsible for halos are typically suspended in cirrus or cirrostratus clouds in the upper troposphere | NORBERTO DUARTE/AFP via Getty Images
3. Volcanic lightning
Sometimes, lightning itself is not enough, and so a volcano needs to be involved. Volcanic lightning is caused by electrical discharge caused by a volcanic eruption, as fragmenting particles of volcanic ash collide and generate static electricity. These have been reported above Alaska's Mount Augustine volcano, Iceland's Eyjafjallajökull volcano, Mount Etna in Sicily, Italy, and Taal Volcano in the Philippines. | SERGIO VELASCO GARCIA/AFP via Getty Images
4. Catatumbo Lightning
You can see another electrical show in Venezuela, over the mouth of the Catatumbo River where it empties into Lake Maracaibo. The lightning show occurs for 140 to 160 nights a year, nine hours per day, and with lightning flashes from 16 to 40 times per minute. | FEDERICO PARRA/AFP via Getty Images